In 2011, Phil visited Canada. He toured the
taiga belt & prairies of southern Manitoba in search or the many brightly
coloured American wood warblers and sparrows that were singing in
preparation for the short breeding season. Loons wailed from every
lake, Sharp-tailed Grouse danced on the prairies and flocks of migrating
wildfowl homed in on the many ponds and marshes. In addition, he wanted to
look at the prospects of finding large mammals like bears and bison, as well
as some smaller ones like beaver, chipmunk and muskrat - he found them all!

Heading north towards the end of
the tree-line, he reached the town Churchill on the shores of Hudson
Bay. Although famous for the polar bears that walk into town, he turned his
attention to the birds and couldn't have been more pleased. Thousands of
Lapland Buntings attracted harriers and falcons, the displaying shorebirds
were watchful for Bald Eagles and the Spruce Grouse only broke cover when
they were confident that the Golden Eagles were gone. Feeders attracted
grosbeaks, finches and sparrows and melting ice in the Hudson River brought
Sabine's and Bonaparte's Gulls inland to join the large flocks of Sandhill
Cranes and Ross's Geese.

The whole place was
amazing and have a tour planned for 2013. As a taster of the incredible
views we had, the photos on this page shows just a few of creatures Phil
saw.

Some Bison at Riding National Park allowed a close
approach.

This was one particularly big bull Bison that didn't look
like he wanted his picture taking!

This female Bison had a young calf with it as well as a
following flock of cowbirds

The Golden-winged Warbler has a special place in the heart
of British Birders. In 1989 more than 4000 birders went to see one at
Larkfield, Kent during one weekend! - It remains the biggest 'twitch'
in British birding history.

the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker is quite common in the vast
forests of Southern Manitoba and we saw at least 4 during our time there.

American Robins are common garden birds in Southern
Manitoba

The Canada Jay is affectionately known as Whisky Jack

part of the Riding National Park Bison herd. These are
cows and calves

Black Bear is a must-see animal here and mothers with
three cubs are not uncommon. They are quite wary of people and so
approaching one requires a little cunning.

the massive Great Horned Owls here are pale and
frosty-looking, typical of northern races

the Great Northern Diver is common on many lakes. Its mournful call
provides a 'Last of the Mohicans' feel to any birding trip here.

The bird below was nesting beside a busy marina and
despite there being heavy drizzle on the morning we found it, the bird
looked wonderful with droplets of water on its head.

cloudy days are excellent for bringing Cliff Swallows
lower down to provide excellent views

Moose are very common, but to see a calf as young as this
takes persistence and a bit of luck

American Barn Swallows differ from European birds in
having a larger orange 'bib' bordered by a restricted or broken dark blue
band

from the air, the Canadian Arctic around Hudson Bay is a
vast wilderness that must be packed with wonderful birds. So Churchill
provides comfortable access to it.

Pine Grosbeaks are difficult to see in the forests, but
private feeders in gardens allow intimate contact with them

the fairy-tale forests are crammed with moss-laden trees,
as well as some excellent birds

One of thousands of
White-crowned Sparrows seen on this trip.

This species
hit the headlines in 2008 when one turned up at Cley in Norfolk. The bird
stayed for weeks allowing hundreds of birdwatchers to enjoy it, while
raising thousands of pounds for the local church. A picture of that sparrow
is immortalised in one corner of a new stained-glass window in recognition
of the birds contribution to the restoration fund.

In Churchill, they are as
numerous as House Sparrows once were in the UK !

Shorelarks (Horned Lark) were common along the dusty roads
near town. This one chose to have a dust bath right by our car

Willow Grouse (Willow Ptarmigan) are easy to spot as the
snow melts. As they retain some of the white winter plumage, they become
easy prey for Golden Eagles.

This Hudsonian Godwit was one of two ringed birds
that Phil was able get pictures of. Being able to read the letters AX on the
left leg allowed him to forward information to researchers at Churchill who
sent details of its movements.

A brief synopsis of the average migration of a Churchill
godwit would include: -

Three weeks staging on the western coast of James Bay
before a non-stop flight from James Bay to Buenos Aires, Argentina; a flight
of 10,000 km and 7 days.

A month staging along the northern Argentine coast before
moving south to Tierra del Fuego where they spend five months wintering.

A return non-stop flight northward to southern Texas in
early May (another flight of ~10,000 km) before hopscotching through the
Great Plains with an average of 3 stops along the way.

And, finally a return to Churchill in late May.....phew

Foxes are not afraid of man here. This vixen brought
lemmings for three hungry cubs

"lovely plumage"

no not a Norwegian Blue Parrot, you are thinking of a
Monty Python sketch!! - this is a Pacific Diver

male Pine Grosbeak

Purple Martin houses are quite common in Southern
Manitoba's towns

This was another good find for Phil. Grey Phalarope is a
rare bird alert species in Southern Manitoba!!!

Beaver dams provide excellent habitat for a variety of
waterfowl and a great place for Bald Eagles & ospreys to hunt

both Sora and Virginia Rails breed here

Tree Swallows like man-made homes to nest in

despite its tropical appearance, the North American White
Pelican is common in Winnipeg

This adult Glaucous-winged Gull (left bird)was a fabulous find. As Phil was on his
way back to the hotel, he decided to check out some large gulls hoping for a
Thayer's Gull. To his surprise, he saw the bird above. He didn't realise how
rare it was here as they are common in Alaska and he had even seen one in the
UK!!! Some people were sceptical about the record, but Rhonda Reid, a local
birder was with him and together with a set of superb pictures there was no
doubt that the bird had been there - albeit briefly.

This reply came back from the local birders:- The Glaucous-winged Gull was a
great find Phil. The only documented Glaucous –winged Gulls in the province were
collected at Churchill: a second-year female on June 1, 1964 and an adult female
on June 24th, 1965.

This means that this is the first sight record for Churchill & the second for
Manitoba.

Slavonian Grebes are present in small numbers at Churchill

the whole state just oozes wilderness !

Please note: The above photographs were taken on
previous trips. Itineraries change from time to time and therefore you cannot
rely on these photographs as being an exact representation of what can be
expected on a future tour. For details of the each tour, you should refer to the
brochure write-up.